Mobile banking remains in it’s infancy in the US, even though it’s growing fast. Out of over 100 top US banks credit unions we profiled, just over twenty had rolled mobile banking out, as we found in our latest 50 page research report 2008 US Mobile Banking Benchmark Study…What Banks Are Offering Now”. The variety of approaches is fascinating, especially given the diversity of available approaches. Read More »

eMarketer – Rachel Kim, an analyst at Javelin, told eMarketer that online payment fraud would start to decrease after 2010 thanks to a couple of security measures. Device recognition is already commonly used by many online banking sites. The security measure identifies when a consumer accesses a site via a computer he or she has not used before. The retailer then asks for additional proof of identity. Read More »

Boston Globe – But James Van Dyke, president of Javelin Strategy, said consumers shouldn’t be too quick to sign on with any identity theft preventers. “There’s some real value with all these products,” said Van Dyke. But he added that with a little effort, consumers can protect themselves at no cost. For instance, people can contact the credit reporting services to request free fraud alerts. And while Van Dyke admitted that few people can search multiple databases for evidence of fraud, they can be more careful in handling personal data. Read More »

Digital Transactions – Tallitsch says the text message can include a statement of convenience fees if the biller wants to use the service for expedited payments, or 11th-hour transactions consumers can make to beat payment deadlines. The linkage of expedited payments with the utility of the mobile phone could have big potential, says Bruce Cundiff, senior analyst at Javelin Strategy & Research, Pleasanton, Calif. “That’s where a lot of the initial payback is going to come from,” he says. Read More »

The Gazette – “Consumers won’t benefit until the primary players – card networks, financial institutions, mobile carriers, merchants and handset manufacturers – work together toward a unified, simple solution that lets everyone win,” Javelin founder and president James Van Dyke wrote in a summary of the report. Read More »

Associated Press/Times Leader News – “Card issuers have a golden opportunity to increase loyalty and retention, and strengthen relationships and their brand reputation, by giving consumers simple identity fraud prevention tools they like to use,” said James Van Dyke, Javelin’s president. According to Javelin research, 8.4 million Americans were victims of identity fraud last year, with total fraud amounting to $50 billion. On average, victims spent 25 hours resolving their fraud case, the study found. Read More »

The Philadelphia Inquirer – “We are not saying [online access and data breaches] are not significant factors,” said James Van Dyke, Javelin’s president and founder. “But the point is that it has really been overblown. I think it is to the detriment of consumers to focus exclusively on these electronic methods of communication.” That is why consumers need to take steps to prevent identity theft, whether by not mailing paper checks or by making sure your computer’s antivirus software is current, he said. Read More »

InternetRetailer.com – 2.3 million consumers were the victims last year of online purchase fraud and that number will increase to 2.7 million in 2010, then trend downward to 2.4 million in 2013, predicts Javelin analyst Rachel Kim in her recent “2008 Identify Fraud Forecast” report. Online fraud will decline as more merchants follow the lead of large e-retailers like Amazon.com in beefing up their security systems, Kim says. Read More »

I’m amazed that companies can continue to grow by relying on deceptive marketing practices.

I keep getting calls and letters from Five Point Capital, using methods that most other financial companies have thankfully left behind long ago. Examples include voice mails from a representative wanting to speak with me “about my account number XXXXX”, which initially made me think that a fraudulent account has been established in their name, or letters and mock-up credit cards sent out implying that an account has been made available in my name and I need to take action to activate it or I won’t be protected. I wonder how many other companies are acting similarly? This is scandalous behavior, and respectable financial institutions should be outraged when a company plays games with the truth. Research from our 2008 ID Fraud Survey Report (sponsored by FiServ/Visa U.S.A. Inc/and Wells Fargo Bank) found a big jump in fraudulent new loans last year (amidst overall reduction in ID Fraud volumes), and it’s vital that we keep the bad behavior at bay for the good of all the honest individuals and companies in this industry.

At the end of the day, the reputation of the industry must be protected.

Wall Street & Technology – Javelin Strategy & Research (Pleasanton, Calif.) analyst Mary Monahan notes that the trust Wells Fargo has established with consumers may help adoption of the vSafe service. “Wells Fargo is a name known to them,” she observes. The service, she adds, appears to meet a customer need and gives users a reason to stick with the bank, helping Wells Fargo’s customer-retention efforts. Read More »